AT least 50 people including children have been killed in the Texas floods – with 27 young girls still missing from their summer camp.
Rescuers are still scouring the devastated landscape in central Texas, but hopes of finding survivors are fast dwindling.
10
10
10
10
Worst hit was Kerr County, particularly areas around the Guadeloupe River where waters rose by 26ft in 45 minutes following a freak dump of rainfall.
About a third of a year’s worth of rain fell in a few short hours, completely overwhelming the waterways and creating an “extraordinary catastrophe”.
Larry Leitha, Kerr County sheriff, said: “We have recovered 43 deceased individuals in Kerr County.
“Among these who are deceased we have 28 adults and 15 children.”
Multiple people lost their lives in other counties, bringing the current confirmed death toll to 50 – though this is sadly expected to rise.
The most desperate search is for a group of school-age girls who went missing from Camp Mystic – a Christian summer camp near the river.
Heartbreaking photos from the wrecked site show sodden mattresses and teddies strewn across dormitories.
On Saturday, Sheriff Leitha said 27 of the children were still missing.
The parents of all the missing children have been notified – and many turned to social media to share desperate pleas for information about their girls.
Local reports suggest that up to five girls have been confirmed as dead, citing their families.
Janie Hunt, 9, was among the dead, her distraught mother told CNN.
A relative of nine-year-old Renee Smajstrla revealed on Facebook that the girls’s body had been found.
Shawna Salta wrote: “We are thankful she was with her friends and having the time of her life, as evidenced by this picture from yesterday.”
And Lila Bonner’s family also made a short statement confirming her death.
They wrote: “In the midst of our unimaginable grief, we ask for privacy and are unable to confirm any details at this time.
“We ache with all who loved her and are praying endlessly.”
Camp Mystic’s owner and director Dick Eastland is amongst those confirmed to have died.
Elsewhere in Texas, four people were confirmed dead in Travis County, northeast of Kerr, and 13 people were missing, according to public information office director Hector Nieto.
10
10
10
The total number of people missing is still unknown.
Texas Department of Emergency Management chief Nim Kidd said air, ground and water-based crews were scouring the length of the Guadalupe River for survivors and the bodies of the dead.
“We will continue the search until all those who are missing are found,” he said.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott said he was expanding a state disaster declaration and was requesting additional federal resources from President Donald Trump.
10
10
10
Out of the misery have come some extraordinary stories of survival.
A 22-year-old woman was miraculously rescued from a tree after being swept 20 miles downstream by ferocious floodwaters.
‘Miracle’ survival: Rescued 20 miles downstream
By Patrick Harrington, foreign news reporter
A YOUNG woman was miraculously rescued after being swept 20 miles downriver in the Texas floods.
The 22-year-old was scooped up by fast-moving water from her campsite in Kerr County, Texas by deadly flash floods at 4am, and found clinging to a tree four hours later.
A third of a year’s worth of rain fell in a few hours in the area, creating an “extraordinary disaster”, with an enormous search-and-rescue mission still underway.
A Center Point resident, Carl, heard screaming when he stepped into his yard at around 8am on Friday morning.
He spotted the woman clinging to a huge Cyprus tree near Lion’s Park Dam as the river thundered beneath her.
She had for been holding on for several hours after a terrifying 20-mile journey down dams and dodging debris.
Emergency calls weren’t connecting, so the local resident desperately flagged down a police car for help.
Two rescue boats were scrambled and battled perilous currents to rescue the stranded camper.
By this time, the water level had receded considerably, so the woman was stranded 12ft above the water’s surface.
She was forced to drop into the rescue boat, and was finally brought to safety.
